45. '100 Bullets,' Brian Azarello and Eduardo Risso

A high concept crime comic about revenge — a mysterious man gives you a gun, 100 untraceable bullets and proof about the people who wronged you — gave way to a sprawling thriller about a vast criminal conspiracy reaching back centuries. Azarello's storytelling is good, but Risso's art is flat-out astounding, particularly his work with shadow and chiaroscuro. He's the perfect artist for Azarello's fallen world.